The present invention relates to a vehicle lamp having a front lens disposed in a front opening portion of a lamp body, the front lens of a compound lens comprising a plurality of lenses which are integrally molded such that their side edge portions are made to abut on each other. Particularly, the present invention relates to a front lens having such a structure that the joint surface between the lenses is inclined with respect to a plane perpendicular to a lens surface line crossing the joint portion.
FIGS. 4 and 5 show a rear combination lamp which will be attached to a comer portion of a vehicle body, and in which a tail and stop lamp and a backup lamp are integrated with each other. FIG. 4 is a front view of the same lamp, and FIG. 5 is a horizontal sectional view of the same lamp (sectional view taken on line V-V shown in FIG. 4).
In this lamp, lamp chambers corresponding to the tail and stop lamp and the backup lamp are defined in a lamp body 1. Bulbs 3 and 4 are received in the respective lamp chambers, while a front lens 5 is integrally attached to a front opening portion of the lamp body 1.
The front lens 5 is of a compound lens in which a red lens 6 for the tail and stop lamp and a white lens 7 for the backup lamp are molded integrally. The reference numerals 6a and 7a represent sectionally hook-shaped side edge portions bent toward the back surface side of the respective lenses 6 and 7. In the front lens 5, the lenses 6 and 7 are integrally molded in such a manner that the side edge portions 6a and 7a are joined in a condition that they are made to abut on each other. The reference numeral 8 represents a joint surface between the side edge portions 6a and 7a.
The lens 5 is molded as follows. After the red lens 6 is molded, a part of the mold is replaced by another mold for molding a white lens, and white lens 7 is thus molded. In such a manner, the front lens 5 in which the red lens 6 and the white lens 7 are integrated with each other is molded.
However, since the front lens 5 is formed into a shape which is largely bent to a side of a vehicle body, the joint surface 8 between the sectionally hook-shaped side edge portions 6a and 7a constituting the joint portion of the lens is largely inclined with respect to a normal line L.sub.2 to a lens surface curved line L.sub.1 crossing the joint portion, as shown in the enlarged view of FIG. 6. Then, the joint portion of the lens has a structure constituted by the obtuse hook-shaped side edge portion 7a in which the joint surface and the lens surface line make an obtuse angle .theta..sub.1, and the acute hook-shaped side edge portion 6a in which the joint surface and the lens surface line make an acute angle .theta..sub.2.
Therefore, there is a fear that the mold is not sufficiently filled with resin up to the narrow portion of the mold corresponding to an acute front edge portion 6a, of the acute hook-shaped side edge portion 6a in a molding step of the front lens 5, particularly in a molding step of the red lens 6 molded previously. As a result, a gap 9 may be formed in the joint surface 8 between the side edge portions 6a and 7a in a molding step of the white lens in which the red lens is inserted. Accordingly, there arises a problem that the external appearance of the front lens is bad, or the gap 9 is enlarged so that water may enter a lamp chamber.